Intraday recovery witnessed in mid-morning trade proved short-lived. After staging a strong intraday rebound that took key benchmark indices into positive zone from negative zone, benchmark indices once again slipped into the red in early afternoon trade. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was currently off 62.46 points or 0.22% at 27,823.75.
Bank stocks edged higher. Telecom stocks also edged higher. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries slumped after Japan's Daiichi Sankyo announced that it has completed the sale of its entire stake in the Indian company.
Earlier, the Sensex and the 50-unit CNX Nifty, both, hit their lowest levels in more than three weeks in morning trade as these key benchmark indices witnessed a sudden slide.
Foreign portfolio investors sold shares worth a net Rs 1506.86 crore yesterday, 20 April 2015, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 962.50 crore on yesterday, 20 April 2015, as per provisional data.
In overseas markets, Chinese and Japanese shares surged after China's step to prop up its faltering economy. China's central bank on Sunday, 19 April 2015, announced reduction in the amount of reserves commercial banks are required to hold by one percentage point, a bigger-than-normal reduction that will free up around $200 billion for lending.
At 12:18 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 62.46 points or 0.22% at 27,823.75. The index fell 199.14 points at the day's low of 27,687.07 in morning trade, its lowest level since 30 March 2015. The index rose 90.72 points at the day's high of 27,976.93 in early trade.
The CNX Nifty was down 26.70 points or 0.32% at 8,421.40. The index hit a low of 8,382.65 in intraday trade, its lowest level since 30 March 2015.The index hit a high of 8,469.35 in intraday trade.
The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 22.33 points, or 0.21% at 10,576.29. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 6.20 points or 0.05% at 11,375.79. Both theses indices outperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive. On BSE, 1,251 shares rose and 1,082 shares fell. A total of 103 shares were unchanged.
Bank stocks edged higher. Among public sector banks, IDBI Bank (up 4.24%), Bank of India (up 1.74%), UCO Bank (up 1.59%), Punjab National Bank (up 1.19%), Punjab and Sind Bank (up 1.18%), Syndicate Bank (up 1.06%), Andhra Bank (up 0.93%), Allahabad Bank (up 0.89%), Canara Bank (up 0.86%), United Bank of India (up 0.69%), Union Bank of India (up 0.66%), Bank of Maharashtra (up 0.52%), Corporation Bank (up 0.51%), Dena Bank (up 0.29%) and Bank of Baroda (up 0.06%) edged higher. Central Bank of India (down 0.1%), State Bank of India (down 0.23%), Vijaya Bank (down 0.75%) and Indian Bank (down 0.8%) edged lower.
Among private sector banks, Axis Bank (up 2.32%), City Union Bank (up 0.21%), Federal Bank (up 0.23%), HDFC Bank (up 0.08%), ICICI Bank (up 1.43%), IndusInd Bank (up 1.51%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.43%) and Yes Bank (up 1.42%) edged higher.
Telecom stocks edged higher. Bharti Airtel (up 1.24%), Idea Cellular (up 0.42%), MTNL (up 0.78%) and Reliance Communications (up 1.21%), edged higher. Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) was down 0.24%
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries slumped after Japan's Daiichi Sankyo announced that it has completed the sale of its entire stake in the Indian company. The stock was off 8.88% at Rs 951.40. The stock hit a high of Rs 976.15 and a low of Rs 933.10 so far during the day. The stock witnessed huge volumes on NSE. So far 25.64 crore shares were traded in the counter on NSE, compared with average daily volume of 24.46 lakh shares in the past one quarter.
Daiichi Sankyo today, 21 April 2015, announced that it has sold its entire holding of 21.49 crore shares of Sun Pharma.
Daiichi Sankyo had yesterday, 20 April 2015, announced that its board had approved selling all or part of its stake in Sun Pharma. The existing business partnership with Sun Pharma will remain unchanged after the deal, it had said. Earlier, Daiichi had received shares of Sun Pharma in March this year following the merger of Ranbaxy Laboratories with Sun Pharma.
Bajaj Finance fell 5.2% to Rs 4,322. The company announced during trading hours that its board approved issuing securities for an aggregate amount upto Rs 1400 crore through qualified institutions placement. The board also approved preferential issue of upto 9.25 lakh warrants convertible into equivalent number of equity shares to Bajaj Finserv, the promoter.
Proceedings in the parliament during the second and final part of the ongoing Budget session which began yesterday, 20 April 2015, are being closely watched as the government hopes to pass the Constitution Amendment Bill for the introduction of a nationwide Goods and Services Tax (GST) in the country. The government had tabled the Constitution Amendment Bill for GST in the Lok Sabha during the winter session of parliament. GST, touted as the single biggest indirect taxation reforms since independence, will simplify and harmonise the indirect tax regime in the country. Central taxes like Central Excise Duty, Additional Excise Duties, Service Tax, Additional Customs Duty (CVD) and Special Additional Duty of Customs (SAD), etc. will be subsumed in GST. At the state level, taxes like VAT/Sales Tax, Central Sales Tax, Entertainment Tax, Octroi and Entry Tax, Purchase Tax and Luxury Tax, etc. would be subsumed in GST.
On the global markets front, investors are closely monitoring developments with regard to Greece. Eurozone finance ministers are scheduled to hold a meeting on Friday, 24 April 2015, to discuss the state of negotiations between Greece and its international creditors. The country's Syriza-led government has been locked in negotiations with its international creditors since coming to power in late January, with progress slow. Greece needs to strike a deal within the next few months to secure billions of euros in bailout aid to avoid defaulting on its debts and potentially exiting the euro.
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